Wrestling Notes: Tigers Take Duals Crown, Shake Up Area Rankings

January 12, 2000|By JASON BRYANT

With a victory over Currituck at the Virginia Duals, Tabb notched its second Black & Blue Division championship in the past five years -- the first one was in 1996. This year, scoring wins over Kecoughtan, Poquoson and Currituck, the Tigers have solidified themselves as one of the top teams in the area, as well as in Group AA. Early polling on the statewide level had Tabb receiving some votes in the past weeks, but the Tigers are getting a lot of consideration due to the Duals field. The biggest win for the Tigers was Danny Martin's 2-0 win over the Islanders Brian Cloutier. Martin was ranked first in the state last week in Group AA, while Cloutier was third.

DUKES ASCEND TO #1. Gloucester and Denbigh took their lumps this past weekend wrestling in the American Division of the Duals, but it was Dukes' 171-pound Travis Latta that had the biggest impression. Latta, who wrestles up at 171, normally weighs in around 160. Despite giving up the extra weight, he took defending AA state champion Nick Cardone of Northampton into overtime, before falling 5-1. Latta had earlier defeated Josh Borum of Salem 5-3. Borum is ranked highly in both South Hampton Roads and the AAA states. Onlookers have credited strong off-season work with the PeninsulaWrestling Association as the secret to his quick rise to prominence. Latta takes over the top spot on the Peninsula this week. He'll have the best match of the week on Saturday, when the Dukes travel to Woodside for a quad. He'll matchup against second- ranked Josh Hoffman of Woodside. Heritage and Menchville will also be participating.

Kecoughtan's first appearance in the Duals in nearly a decade is most likely a move that will keep the Warriors' program churning to the top of the Peninsula District in years to come. Coach Victor Holloway said in the beginning of the season that the Duals are a step up for his program and the kids were looking forward to it. The Warriors made the most of their Black & Blue appearance, winning the "Do-or-Die" round over district rival Warwick. The Warriors then dropped 47-27 to eventual champion Tabb. In their consolation victory over Grafton, Larry France topped Marty Johnson at 215 pounds. Johnson, ranked first in the area for almost a month, held off France's pin attempt in the second period, but the decision cut the lead to four points at 36-32. Had France lost, the Warriors would have been down 39-31 heading into the final match, just out of reach. The win opened the door for Hurl Westphal to score a fall at heavyweight and bring the team victory to Kecoughtan. York ended the Warriors run in the consolation quarterfinals.

TIDBITS. York's Jason Dye, a two-time state qualifier, was the Black & Blue Division's most outstanding wrestler for the Duals. ... Lafayette squeaked by Poquoson 36-34 in the consolation semifinals of the Black & Blue, Josh Horn's 8-3 victory over Justin Mulkey gave the Rams a 16-point deficit heading into the last three bouts. With Lamont Logan pinning Andy Swett, Chris Miller receiving a forfeit and Stephen Cashman pinning Corey Carr, the Rams pulled ahead and won their first match against the Islanders since dropping to Group AA. ... Former Bay Rivers District wrestlers Jason Gentilli (Tabb), Mike Dunn (Grafton), Brad Fitzpatrick (Poquoson) and Jamie Holloway (Poquoson) are all assistant coaches for their alma maters. University of Virginia wrestler Joey Legg of Gloucester was also seen on the bench of Dukes' matches this past weekend.

Jason Bryant is the Editor of Mat Talk On-Line and can be reached at datwink@erols.com